Thanks to ISP/Hollywood ‘six strikes’ rules, I’m now using a VPN

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The six strikes policy we covered earlier this month has been somewhat delayed, and is now scheduled for early 2013, but the agreement between the entertainment industry and ISPs is still going to be implemented. The policy, dubbed “six strikes,” is the result of over a year of negotiation between ISPs and the movie/music studios. I’ve read the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that came out of that process. As we previously discussed, it’s a smart, balanced document. It emphasizes education and notification over draconian tactics; it comes down hard on the side of users and grants ISPs substantial leeway to deal with copyright infringers.

It’s also the reason why, as of Tuesday night, I’m now a VPN (virtual private network) customer. VPN’s are services that anonymize your browsing and/or P2P traffic, in exchange for a monthly fee. What I want to talk about is the reason why I decided to subscribe to a VPN.

The laughable case for trusting the entertainment industry

The tone and statements of the MoU stand in stark contrast to the vindictive practices and bombastic rhetoric both the MPAA and RIAA have leveled at the public for the past twelve years. SOPA and PIPA weren’t unusual, one-time blips; they were the latest in a series of sustained efforts to grant unprecedented enforcement authority to corporations in the name of stopping piracy. When they failed, former senator and current MPAA president Chris Dodd threw a temper tantrum that would’ve embarrassed a bratty toddler.

I don’t want to have meaningful discourse. You guys cheated!

For more than a decade, the RIAA, MPAA, and sister organizations like the IFPI have lobbied for harsher punishments and greater ISP snooping. Earlier this year, Dodd claimed that Google’s filtering in China proved the company could monitor and filter results in the US as well. Speaking of Google, the amount of vitriol directed at the company from Capitol Hill has been astonishing. There’s been a concerted push to dismiss the censorship and monitoring concerns of Google and other organizations/companies as nothing more than a smokescreen that cloaks the earnings these companies make from piracy.

After SOPA and PIPA failed, RIAA CEO Cary Sherman claimed that Google and Wikipedia “purport to be neutral sources of information, but then exploit their stature to present information that is not only not neutral but affirmatively incomplete and misleading.” Dodd explicitly threatened to cut donations to politicians who refused to vote the way the MPAA thought they should.

After all the secret treaties, scare tactics, reports that claimed that online piracy funds terrorism, ridiculously inflated loss projections, and concerted efforts to hold pirates accountable for ludicrously huge infringement awards, we’re supposed to believe that the RIAA and MPAA have turned over a new, reasonable leaf?

No way.

The diminishing barrier of ISP protection

Once upon a time, ISPs could generally be counted on to fight efforts to unmask and sue various users. Mergers, purchases, and changing roles have significantly diminished the interest ISPs have in maintaining such safeguards. Comcast doesn’t want its ISP customers to flee to another carrier, but Comcast now owns NBC Universal. The company has made it clear that it doesn’t want to be a dumb pipe utility; it wants to sell premium content to its own users, and it’s willing to flaunt net neutrality agreements to do so.

It’s not hard to see where the bread is buttered here

Verizon, AT&T, and Time Warner Cable don’t own the media properties that Comcast does, but all of these corporations see premium content agreements as the lifeblood of their futures. Most US broadband markets are monopolies or duopolies, which limits the chances that customers will bolt for a different provider. Service contracts with high termination fees are another barrier.

The six strikes MoU doesn’t make bedfellows of the various ISPs and the entertainment industry, but it aligns their interests more closely than before.

The unclear arbitration process

One of the things we know about the ISP notification process is that end-users will be able to pay a $35 fee and dispute the claim of infringement via arbitration. That’s virtually the only thing we know. Arbitration can cover a huge number of scenarios, from sitting down at a table, to a phone call, to an automatic reconsideration of the facts with little to no ability to submit additional evidence or argue one’s case.

The CCI (Center for Copyright Information) has stated that it believes the total number of arbitrations will be low, because hey, these are just warnings. It’s no big deal — assuming you trust the entertainment industry to live up to the spirit of the MoU. Then again, the number of people the RIAA took to court was much, much lower than the number of people it threatened with lawsuits unless they settled with it and agreed to pay damages.

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Heisenberg7

Or $6.95 for the proxy instead of the VPN. Either way well worth the money.

http://www.globalgeeknews.com pcnerd37

When it sounded like the scheme was going to launch a couple of months ago, I started using TorGuard. So far I have been extremely happy with them as I notice only a small decrease in my normal bandwidth when I am downloading things from Bittorrent (1.8MB/s vs 1.6MB/s w/VPN). General browsing seems to suffer no slowdown when I am using it for my normal surfing too. The only real issue I have had is that when I download the client on my MacBook Pro, it says the file is damaged and won’t install it (I haven’t got around to contacting support about the problem). On Windows it works great though!

VirtualMark

I hate conspiracy theories, but just watched an interesting video that i find hard to dispute. CNET is owned by Viacom. CNET for the past decade has been one of the main places to download such tools as Kazaa, Limewire, Bittorrent, DRM bypassing programs etc. It seems as if the music industry actually helped piracy just so that they could make a stronger case for themselves to control the internet.

In the UK we currently have a bit of censorship – the Pirate Bay is currently blocked, with a few other sites on the way. When things get too bad, i’ll get a VPN too.

dsfdjsk jkdsfsd

Why would you DL from Cnet? Get it directly from the products’ site….

m0r1arty

FOX jumped on an upload I had on YouTube of had of John Goodman climbing out of mud at the beginning of ‘Raising Arizona’. They were on it instantaneously.

I had all the details there. The name of the movie, where to buy it, why it’s a great scene and that it should be citable, pretty much everything I could put in to make sure the film would garner more sales.

Even though I appealed their auto-take down with an eloquent piece depicting why this 25 year old film is important to contemporary culture and how it’s often overlooked due to a scarcity of decent clips from it (Although there are some clips) they stood by their actions.

Guess who is never paying to see a FOX assisted production ever again?

zombie

Here’s an idea, Stop advertising the vpn workaround to people and we won’t have to worry about it. Your blasting the vpn solution across the net. Keep your mouth shut about it.

http://geek.com/ sal cangeloso

It’s not a work around. Using a VPN is not wrong/immoral/illegal. It’s using the internet on, to some extent, your own terms. Once you’re on the VPN you can choose to do things that organizations like the RIAA might not like, but let’s not assume all people who are using VPN are pirates.

As for keeping things secret, that makes no sense. If this is valuable knowledge then people should know about it.

timverry

Indeed, VPNs are not inherently wrong. It essentially makes your ISP the dumb data pipe is should be in the first place :).

zombie

I never said vpn was wrong but do not bring to light that pirates are using it. Yes VPN has more legal functions than illegal. In this case the article is pointing out it’s P2P use case.

Joel Hruska

No it isn’t.

This article is pointing out why I don’t trust the RIAA/MPAA to enforce any form of fair contract. Part of the problem there is misidentification.

EnlighteningInterview

Hollywood’s approach to content is a bit crazy. In an interview, with a Senior VP at Sony Pictures Entertainment, a SVP themself said that the legitimate contracts written for distribution, including those in theaters, are inaccurate. For example, during the interview, it was disclosed that Hollywood Entertainment Attorneys, likely over lunch, would present a paper contract for distribution or showing of an entertainment product, but it would be incomplete. The example (extremely similar) was this-

“Let’s say I have this paper contract, that says we have to deliver Bewitched. Now Go into the vault and get Bewitched.” (Yes, they said “Vault”)

I said OK…

They then said “The vault has over 300,000 assets in it. Make sure you get the right one”

I said OK…

Anyways, after a while, it was learned that the lawyers themselves don’t know what is in the vault. They didn’t know what aspect ratio, what language, or even if it’s a specialized version, likely for showing on an airplane.

So Hollywood Attorneys write illegitimate contracts, (better described as “Sales Orders”) for distribution of legitimate business deals. Apparently this is an industry-wide issue, and it’s real weird that a major studio doesn’t even have an inventory of the assets it owns.

I’d say it’s pretty screwed up, but anything can happen if your a Hollywood Attorney; you may spill your strong drink over lunch while writing up legitimate contracts.

Anyways, in the end, the SVP described the issue as such- “We don’t know if we sold Bewitched The Movie, The TV Series, or a CD Soundtrack.”

I thanked them for the interview, told them to audit the sales orders, and consider firing the attorneys who can’t properly protect the assets of the company, or write up a legitimate sales order.

GatzLoc

So, what you’re telling me is that someone makes a claim against me and I have to pay the money to resolve it? While they pay nothing and are instead getting my money to help them make that claim against me.

Wow, truly a case of where the public servants think the public are servants.

JachinRivers

Using a VPN as a workaround for your political gripes? You lost all credibility as a technology writer in the title.

Joel Hruska

You know, I really *shouldn’t* ask, but I’m actually curious.

Why?

You can’t be challenging my choice of provider, because I didn’t name it. The CCI has already admitted that these agreements won’t detect people who use VPN services, so you can’t be claiming that the concept won’t function.

VPN’s work. That’s the reason they exist.I don’t claim that signing up for a VPN service = automatically, foolproof anonymity, so you can’t be arguing against *that*…

Please, enlighten me, while I cry and sweep the broken bits of my credibility up off the floor.

JachinRivers

First, a VPN isn’t intended for this purpose.

Second, considering the bandwidth and latency penalties why bother?

Third, don’t you find it troubling that you’re paying for a additional service that gets you around the issue (for now), but your still paying for and using the same ISP that connects you to the VPN? This isn’t any real solution to the problem.

Finally, I would think that Extremetech would expect it’s writers to set a good example. Sure the MPAA and RIAA questionable, but you publicly paint a picture of an individual with something to hide. Not professional.

Aezen

Expecting a reasonable amount of privacy is not the same as having something to hide. Nor is it unprofessional.

Joel Hruska

1) There are VPN services very much intended for this purpose.

2) I’ve experienced no bandwidth or latency penalties.

3) As I cover, monopoly/duopoly conditions prevent service provider changes. Research it. Where I live, there is one broadband provider. You can have Time Warner Cable, or you can have dial-up.

4) I do not trust the MPAA/RIAA. I do not trust their software, their arbitration process, or that they will act in good faith. Therefore I do not trust their ability to accurately identify innocent and guilty parties or to pursue acceptable remedies against said individuals.

I therefore choose to take actions that will help protect me. This is not unreasonable or unprofessional. Nor does it imply that I’m a master pirate;*

*I will admit that I believe people have the right to buy a DVD, rip the contents, and copy them to a tablet or smartphone. I do not consider this piracy and I reject the idea that the people who support the entertainment industry should be forced to pay multiple times for the same show or film.

Technically, this makes me a piracy advocate.I maintain that there’s a very real difference between space-shifting for personal consumption and making copies available online via The Pirate Bay. The fact that the entertainment industry disagrees with me (as does copyright law) does not, ipso facto, make me guilty of anything save common sense. What it demonstrates is that copyright law badly needs amendment.

In calling for such, I am in *extremely* good company.

John

Why do you need a VPN to “buy a DVD, rip the contents, and copy them to a tablet or smartphone.”

Joel Hruska

I didn’t say you need one for the other. I’m saying that the legal definition of what piracy is and the DMCA-fueled restrictions on fair use are ridiculous.

John

so you need the VPN to hide your downloading of pirated materials?

What, Me Worry?

you need a VPN to keep ISPs and unruly asshat RIAA/MPAA from hitting you with unwarranted warnings and accusations. Speaking of asshats, it seems we’ve got a convention right here on this forum. Yes, I’m looking at YOU.

Neon Frank

Of course a VPN is intended for circumventing government ISP regulations ask any expat who lives in China who wants to use their email or even open their company website because the Great Firewall of China has blocked it.

On the subject of downloading copyrighted material where is Hollywood when it comes to China? Who needs to download movies or music in China one can simply go to any of the HUGE pirated movie shops and buy all the Bluray, DVD, CD and even TV shows they want.

RIAA, how many times must I pay for the licence to have the Beatles White Album? Every time a new format comes out? Everything bit of music I’ve downloaded I have already bought either in vinyl, or CD and have either lost the CD or the vinyl is outdated. In addition Music down loaders, pirates buy more music legitimately than people who do not.

That’s BILLION with a B and still counting because that’s the BOX OFFICE take and not including DVD and Bluray. Pirates aren’t hurting Hollywood at all, I don’t recall seeing Hollywood stars wearing barrels asking for a quarter. Pirates also buy discs, and those who don’t and downloaded the movie chances are wouldn’t have bought the disc in the first place.

Hollywood ought to be embracing the pirate industry as after all if it wasn’t for the first mp3 player and pirates there wouldn’t be a iTunes.

Wake up and smell the coffee

What, Me Worry?

You, sir, are a jackass.

Debaditya Chatterjee

well, here in india at least for the time time being, ISPs dont give a s*** about what their users are downloading no matter how much the gov barks at them. i must be downloading at least 15-16GB of pirated content everyday…………..& i’m actually buying a new 1TB HDD to keep all that stuff

http://www.moviein3d.net/ Caitlin Roberts

Good for you, way to go India, pirate everything and everyone, show the world how things are done.

Debaditya Chatterjee

i read somewhere that you would never have so many tech-pros, geeks etc from india if it werent for the excessive proliferation of pirated software in the country. it allowed indian techies to get a grip on a wide variety of software & technologies their western counterparts just couldnt because of their stifling laws. software piracy is still rampant & is becoming even more so with the widespread availability of high speed broadband all over the country.

g9fdhuig

Yes, because downloading movies and TV shows makes you a tech genius… NOT. Anyone can do that. YOU, as a user, do NOT do anything special. People who make things like the Pirate Bay are – they clearly have knowledge that many do not. Learning from friends/the internet where to go and download content illegally takes NO special abilities. Furthermore, most software has trials that you can use just as well or even better free counterparts from other companies.

GatzLoc

Go, Britain for killing close to two billion Indians. The hell, does the only country to resist Islamic invasion care what you think? Look up the Battle of Baraich, where the muslims were defeated so badly they didn’t dare enter for another 12 generations.. Jo Bole So Nihaal Sat Sri Akal!

Debaditya Chatterjee

not to be the killjoy, here dude, but arent you going a little bit off the topic?? i mean, like, what does US federal policy about software piracy have anything to do about the Battle of Baraich???

GatzLoc

Sadi Ijit Da Saval.

Debaditya Chatterjee

i’m sorry i dont speak punjabi. what does that mean??

Nolligan Nino

“the only country to resist Islamic invasion” – a laughably incorrect statement

– So who drove the Moors out of Spain?
– Who lifted the sieges of Vienna?
– Who libereated themselves from Muslim Ottoman rule in the 19th and 20th centuries?

… and why mention Britain when the article is about the USA?

GatzLoc

It was in response to caitlin; also resisting doesn’t mean getting
owned by not much more evolved troglydytes for seven centuries. The
other two examples are just turks, when I say muslim I mean arab, turk,
pathan, persian, tajik, the whole muslim coaltion. Everywhere else that
faced that ie.e central asia, north africa, M.E converted almost 100% in
1 or 2 decades.

I see you are some kind of asian, the confoud conformity prevalent in your lands is the only thing that is laughable.

It’s utterly sad that there is such a dearth of good options and alternatives for something as basic as internet service in a developed nation like USA. Capitalism is spectacular till the moment monopolies emerge and it starts to look like Communism/Govt. Control in a similar looking bottle.. all.over.again.

‘Tis Moi

…and how long before they attempt to go after the companies offering VPN services?

MCPtz

A VPN is just a tunnel to another ISP.
If that ISP is applying the six strikes rule(s), then that VPN becomes useless in one day if pirating is what people are using it for.

http://twitter.com/LeanGainsGuide Jeff Kastner

It’s a tunnel to the company providing the software to you and most of these aren’t even US based. AceVPN is $5 a month.. connect to Europe and download all you like.

disqus_eFcx1LIJGV

What lies and crap. Joel, how would you like to lose your income ?….re ” ridiculously inflated loss projections “……..seeing as there is no such thing as file sharing. It’s copying. I’m a musician/writer/composer….that shit has crippled our industry…get some REAL facts.

Jason DiBenedetto

Started up with my first “real” VPN service/provider the other day…why I haven’t done it sooner!? Not that I’m interested in discussing my uses beyond added privacy and security, however, I will say having it in the simplest terms makes me feel more American… how so, choice! No matter what side of the debate you fall on, the one common issue we should be dealing with together as a whole is the amount of choice/freedom we are losing every single day across the board. ISP’s and Major Media are greedy pigs, period! It’s a fight to the top of the world for them and the one who makes the biggest noise in terms of piracy is doing nothing more than saying, “notice us – bullies” we are gods and can make anything happen. Well, for the moment at least, I still have choices, and so do you! Keep your freedom, go VPN, stay under the radar and take back your power to choose!

Singh1699

You have no power so you have no choice. Shastaar k adheen hai Raaj Original Message

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